Chapter 5 - An Old Debt Repaid
They broke through the back window just as the front doors of the bakery were kicked off their hinges.
Men in tactical gear swarmed the empty room, shouting orders in the dark.
Anthony and Sofia scrambled over a rusted chain-link fence, dropping into an overgrown alleyway.
They ran through the rain-slicked streets of Queens, sticking to the deepest shadows, avoiding the glare of streetlamps.
"We need a secure connection to upload the files," Sofia gasped, clutching a stitch in her side.
"My burner laptop isn't powerful enough to break through Preston's firewall without crashing."
"I know someone," Anthony said, his mind racing. "Someone who owes me his life."
An hour later, they knocked on the heavy metal door of a tiny, subterranean apartment in Brooklyn.
The door cracked open on a security chain, revealing a pair of suspicious, bloodshot eyes.
"Anthony?" a gruff voice asked.
"Let us in, Jimmy. We're in trouble," Anthony said.
Jimmy "The Ghost" Rossi had once been the most notorious hacker in the Tri-State area.
Ten years ago, Anthony had paid off a massive gambling debt that would have cost Jimmy his legs, asking only for a promise that Jimmy would go straight.
Jimmy unchained the door, pulling them inside a room that looked like a spaceship control center.
Monitors covered every inch of the walls, glowing with lines of green and blue code.
"You look like hell, old man," Jimmy said, locking three deadbolts behind them.
Anthony quickly explained the situation, holding up the black drive.
Jimmy let out a low whistle. "You're telling me you have the keys to the kingdom? Every dirty secret in this city?"
"I need you to broadcast it," Sofia said, stepping forward.
"I need you to send these files to the inbox of every major news outlet, FBI field office, and federal judge in the country simultaneously."
Jimmy cracked his knuckles, a feral grin spreading across his face.
May you like
"I promised your dad I wouldn't do anything illegal ever again," Jimmy laughed.
"But taking down a billionaire sociopath? That falls under public service. Plug it in, kid. Let's make some noise."
